welcome to nhk world "newsline." fighting in syria between government and opposition forces continues in some parts of the country despite a four-day

cease-fire proposed by the united nations and the arab league. the cease-fire took effect on friday, which marks the beginning of the muslim holiday of eid al adha. anti-government activists in the central city of homs say the military violated the truce, killing four people. heavy fighting was also reported in the northern city of idleb. reports from daraa province in southern syria say government opened fire to disperse demonstrators. the syrian government has warned that troops will respond to any attempts by the rebels to attack or expand areas under their control. people in afghanistan are grieving on a day they should be celebrating. a suicide bomber targeted a mosque in the country's north.

the explosion killed at least 36 people and wounded many others. it happened as muslims around the world marked the eid al adha holiday. police say a man detonated the explosives friday outside a mosque in maymana. witnesses say the attacker was wearing a police uniform. no one has claimed responsibility. afghan security forces are trying to stop the violence in their country which is a daily threat. they take full control when foreign troops withdraw by end of 2014. barack obama has served as an example in hiss campaign's effort to get out the vote. the u.s. president stopped at a polling station near his home in chicago. campaign strategists for both obama and opponent mitt romney say early voting could be a decisive factor in the election. obama became the first president to vote early. e usualed his supporters to exercise their rights before election day, november 6th.

obama made the same pitch in the 2008 presidential election. votes cast early accounted for about 30% of the total. >> all across the country we're seeing a lot of early voting. it means you don't have to figure out if the you need to take time off from work, figure out how to pick up the kids. >> experts say the share of early votes this time could reach 35%. the figure could exceed to 60% in swing states such as colorado and florida. a new opinion poll suggests romney has topped 50% support among likely voters. that's the first time he's hit that mark. pollsters for abc news and "the washington post" surveyed about 1,400 likely voters from sunday through wednesday. 50% of respondents said they would vote for romney, 37% for obama. the pollsters ask who would better manage the economy. 52% said romney. 43% said obama.

the election is decided by the number of electoral votes allotted to each state. there are 538 votes in the electoral college. abc news estimates obama is likely to win 217 of them, romney 191. u.s. voters seem buried under massive amounts of information and claims made by the presidential candidates. many voters can't tell whether the information is accurate or even true. nhk world's susumu kojima reports. >> reporter: in the last four years you cut permits and licenses on federal land and federal waters in half. >> not true, governor romney. not true. >> reporter: in the presidential debates, both candidates have bolstered their arguments with a lot of facts. often one candidate refutes the other's information. many voters don't know who or what to believe. >> it's hard to tell a lot of

times whether what they're saying is actually true. >> it's important in any democracy to have some way to objectively check the claims that politicians sometimes make. >> reporter: the public is getting help from fact checkers. these experts and journalists check the accuracy of the candidates' facts and make the findings public. >> over the last 30 months, we have seen 5 million jobs in the private sector created. >> obama's figure is nearly a half a million jobs short according to current bureau of labor statistics figures. >> the president said he'd cut the deficit in half. unfortunately he doubled it. trillion-dollar deficits for four years. >> not true. the annual deficit was already running at $1.2 trillion when obama took office. >> reporter: how is fact

checking actually done? on the last presidential debate, we watched one of the oldest fact-checking groups do their job. they are called factcheck.org, established by the university of pennsylvania. four members went to work. this man used to be a newspaper reporter. he covered congress and government for more than 20 years. he is managing this evening's fact checking. >> because foreign policy had not been as important or central in this campaign as the economy has been up until recently, there's some material here we're going to have to research for first time. >> reporter: as soon as the debate begins, eugene kiely starts to type what both candidates say. he comes across figures or

comments that need checking. next, he e-mails colleagues, telling them what to research. then they check the accuracy of the comments. they use official sources like those of the congressional research for candidates' past remarks. and when kiely thinks it's necessary to release the results, the group sends out tweets. it indicates romney's statements contradicts what he said in the past. they also verify whether each candidate's calls his contestant's remarks accurately. >> we are here to be an advocate for voters. and if they have any -- if they are confused or have questions, hopefully we'll be able to answer them for them. so that's why it's important because there needs to be a counterspin to the spin that they're getting from

politicianings. >> reporter: what the candidate says, how he says it, and how he reacts to his opponent is the criteria that borders the u.s. presidential elections use to make their choice. but in this election, there's another criteria -- the accuracy or truth of a candidate's claims. susumu kojima, nhk world, washington. president obama has yet another figure to throw at voters as he campaigns across the country. the u.s. economy is picking up according to the latest gdp data. commerce department analysts say it grew at an annualized pace of 2% in the third quarter of this year. the latest numbers for the july-to-september period are slightly better than market expectations. the growth rate was 1.3% in the previous quarter. personal consumption grew 2%, a rise from 1.5% growth in the

second quarter. peop people's spending accounts for about 70% of u.s. economic activity. japanese electronics maker nec swung into the black in its fiscal half for the first time in four years. the company on friday reported a group net profit of $100 million between april and september. that compared with the year earlier loss of $137 million. nec officials traced the turnaround in part to a jump in orders for the construction of communications stations from mobile phone carriers. also, they said sales of lcd panel patent to taiwan electronics maker hon hai precision industry also helped. despite the first half profit, the company left its earnings projections for the whole fiscal year unchanged. nec president nobuhiro endoh say relations with china have slowed down some of its business in the neighboring country. people who use microsoft are getting in touch with the company's latest product.

windows 8 is now available. it's the biggest upgrade since 1995. the operating system is designed with both pcs and tablets in mind. and it's offering computer manufacturers a boost as they try to reboot interest in their products. nhk world's daisuke azima reports. >> reporter: at the stroke of midnight, windows 8 went on sale. >> translator: it beats my expectations. it changed my belief of what a pc can do, and i'm so excited. >> reporter: when windows 8 is turned on, the top screen displays with colorful titles. users can also switch the program by touching the screen. the new operating system maintains operational integrity

with thousands of devices, including pcs, smartphones and tablets. the pc market that microsoft has dominated for so long has now become standard. the firm is facing a crisis as it attempts to make up for lost time in expanding the tablet market. microsoft aims to make a comeback with the release of windows 8. microsoft made an unusual move. it held a giant press conference with 13 pc makers. pc makers are releasing a push for the new product for the windows 8 launch. one such company is toshiba. many business people take the functions of a laptop and tablet.

this led toshiba to develop the product. at first glance, it looks like a conventional pc. but when it is folded over, it becomes completely flat and information can be shared easily with another person facing the user. sliding the monitor changes the product into a tablet. >> translator: we are proud that we don't compromise on any features of the tablet or lab laptop. >> sony is releasing a product. its goal is to change the idea of what a pc is. it's operated by several people at the same time, using a 20-inch touchscreen. sony conceived this pc to enhance communication. just by lightly pressing the screen, the device may be used

lying flat because it is easy to carry around. >> translator: sony plans a big expansion in entertainment and will polish and provide new products. the launch of windows 8 has laid down an environment that will make it easy for sony to promote its uniqueness. >> reporter: an expert sees the release of windows 8 as an opportunity to change the form of pcs and tablets. >> there might be a chance for business people wanting to use files back and forth on the computer on the business side. that might take up, and then that kind of brings up the momentum of the using windows 8. >> reporter: the launch of windows 8 marks the start of an era in which they have pcs,

tablets and smart phones are becoming here. which of the operating system providers will win the race? apple, google, or microsoft? with pc makers also entering the market, competition is certain to head up. daisuke azuma, nhk world, tokyo. japanese carmaker production in china plun mged in september compared to a year ago. strained relations between the two countries are affecting sales there. suzuki motor and toyota suffered an output decline in china of over 40% from the same month last year. mitsubishi motors production dropped by 30.5%. honda and nissan's both fell over 20% and mazda's by 13.7%. the ban in china for japanese autos is expected to continue for some time. carmakers plan to keep down their output. toyota has decided on a 35%

production cut at its plants in china through the end of this year. japanese automakers reduced domestic production as well in september. the figure for the eight major firms is down 12.2% from a year ago. that's the first decline in 12 months. the end of the government subsidies for buyers of ecofriendly cars is partly to blame. here are the latest market figures.

disgraced chinese politician bo xilai might soon have to answer for his alleged wrong doings in court. members of the country's top legislature have expelled the former rising star. that means he'll no longer be shielded from criminal prosecution. the state-run xinhua news agency is reporting members of the standing committee of the national people's congress approved a decision to remove bo as a deputy. bo is the former communist party chief of chongqing city. officials stripped him of his communist party membership last month. he has lost immunity from prosecution and will likely be indi indicted. bo is accused of abuse of power, taking huge bribes, and having improper relations with numerous women. his wife is currently in jail for the murder of a british businessman. bo is expected to be among china's next generation of leaders before he fell from grace. the communist party will convene its congress on november 8th to

begin its transition of power. china got one step closer to having its own global positioning system with the launch of a 16th satellite. officials say the system will be available in most of the asian pacific region early next year. the state-run xinhua news agency reports the satellite was launched late on thursday from the southwestern province of sichuan. officials say more than 30 navigation satellites will be on orbit by 2020 to cover the entire world. similarly to the gps system operated by the united states. china's alternative is called bedo. tests on it began last december. chinese officials say the positioning system will have a wide range of applications, and some analysts point out that china is developing it for both commercial and military purposes. about 10,000 children are born in japan each year with

congenital heart disorders. that's roughly one baby in 100. many of them can be cured through surgery, but lately some people are finding themselves with life-threatening conditions such as heart failure decades after undergoing surgery. nhk world's takafumi terui reports. >> reporter: this man from shizuoka city in central japan is 56 years old. he was born with a hole in his heart. the man had an operation when he was 11 years old. he'd been healthy for years afterward. but in may this year, an electrocardiogram during a rue heen health checkup revealed some irregularities. the man went to see a doctor. he learned that his heart had grown to 1 1/2 times its normal size and could stop beating at

any moment. he was hospitalized immediately. >> translator: the doctor said i could die. i was really scared. >> reporter: doctors found that the cause was surgery he had as a child. the surgery had been a success, but it left a big scar on his heart. as the man's blood pressure rose over the years and his arteries hardened, his heart reached the brink of failure. >> translator: i thought the surgery had cured my heart disease. i never imagined i'd develop new symptoms years later. >> reporter: even many doctors were unaware until recently that childhood surgery could result in such risks. a doctor at the university of tokyo hospital says many such cases are only now coming to

light. he says that's because japan has no system in place to follow up on patients who underwent surgery as children. congenital heart disorders are treated by pediatricians. but patients gradually stop seeing their pediatricians as they grow older. adult heart patients are treated by cardiologists or specialists in internal medicine. these doctors have little information about the surgery their patients had as children. that makes them hesitant to treat their adult symptoms. at this hospital, pediatricians and cardiologists work together to determine the best care for their patients. it's a rare kind of partnership. a health minister survey shows that only 14 hospitals in japan routinely include cardiologists

in treatment decisions for young patients. >> translator: patients are being neglected due to a shortage of cardiovascular experts. if we're not careful, we're likely to start hearing reports of people dying because of this problem. >> takafumi terui dropped by the studio to give more details on his story. here he is in conference with shery ahn. >> give than people see different doctors over the years, it seems natural to have a system that would follow up on patients who had surgery as children. why doesn't japan have that? >> yes. surgery like the kind performed today on children with congenital heart disorders only began slightly over 30 years ago. so it's only recently that doctors have learned that patients need to be monitored all the way into adulthood. that's why there's no follow-up program. also, the doctor in the report

mentioned that japan has very few doctor who specialize in congenital heart disorders. that means there just aren't enough experts who can accurately diagnose and treat these problems. >> what about other countries? do they have such a system? >> yes. according to a lecturer at tokyo women's university who studies this issue, canada is fairly advanced in this field. he said canada has 15 medical facilities which specialize in treatment of adult patients who have overcome congenital disorders. but he says that even in canada, fewer than half of such patients actually take the time to see doctors at these facilities, probably because most people consider themselves cured after a successful operation and think they no longer need medical treatment. it's important in any country to raise awareness among people

with congenital disorders and their families. they must know that they should continue to undergo medical observation even if they've had a successful surgery as children. >> nhk world's takafumi terui. a hurricane is forcing its way past the bahamas and moving north. meteorologist robert speta is here with the details. robert? well, yes, we are still watching sandy here, and it's continuing to cruise off here towards the north. much of the caribbean, you did get impacted on your thursday, now going through friday. conditions are improving, still some showers across portions of haiti, but for the most part the storm is rushing off towards the north. now the east coast of the united states, you're going to be on tap for some heavy rainfall. already you're seeing some very rough surf along the east coast of florida, even off there towards the coast of the carolinas. tropical storm watches and warnings are actually being posted here, but where the main threat's going to be is going into the early part of next week. take a look at this. as the storm continues to pull

off here towards the north, it's going to be making a sharp turn towards the northwest, and that's where it's going to be impacting, washington, d.c., even off towards new york city, you could even be seeing hurricane strength winds. flooding from the heavy rainfall of the storm system, but not just the exact track. this is a very wide wind field, so you're going to be seeinging some gale-force winds across a huge area, across much of the cities in the northeast. not just that, but cold air coming in out of canada. look at winnipeg with a high of zero. that's going to filter down into the ap la lags mountains the early part of next week. could be seeing some serious accumulations of snowfall into these regions. on the other side of the ocean, we are seeing a frontal area moving across portions of italy. that is going to push over toward the balkans, but the same storm system actually brought some severe weather towards portugal yesterday. i want to show you a video coming out of here in portugal where a twister caused some serious damage to several

factories. powerful winds also hit a parking lot damaging numerous vehicles here. it's estimated that the winds in the storm reached about 200 kilometers per hour, so very serious and dangerous storm here and wrecked up a lot of cars. you can see as this continues to scroll off there towards the left, a car down there in the valley. so that's just showing how significant and dangerous this storm system was. now conditions are improving in portugal, but as we continue to track off towards the east, conditions are stark in italy and towards the alpines. farther towards the north, though, we are watching cold air dmooif, even seeing some gusty winds across western russia around moscow. you could be seeing some 90 kilometer per hour winds. stockholm, minus 3, low in moscow minus 1, and towards berlin, you're dipping below the freezing mark. let's look to the other side of the world, though, to the philippines as we continue to watch son-tinh. philippines, you are seeing some improving conditions, but as

this continues to track off west towards vietnam, you are next on the mark for the storm. saturday going into sunday morning expect a landfall. that has to continue to push inland. all this moisture from son-tinh will push off towards the north. china going into the early part of next week, including hong kong on your tuesday, you could see some very significant rainfall totals. so definitely want to watch this storm system. flooding and even landslides will be high at risk across much of this region. farther towards the north, we are watching a low-pressure system moving across korea bringing showers for your saturday. saturday evening, western japan, you'll feel the effects of this. even some thunderstorm activity could be firing up across the west coast here. eventually into tokyo, showers are expected for you throughout your sunday. have the umbrella ready. get ready for some rather wet wet weather. temperatures shape up like this -- tokyo with a high of 19, beijing at 23, and ulaanbaatar, you still have the cold spot on the map for saturday, minus 1 expected for your high. here's your extended forecast.

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we'll be back with more updates in 30 minutes. i'm gene otani in tokyo.